The American, who is returning home to join the Colorado Rapids, wrote an emotional farewell letter to fans, saying: “I love all of you, and am so grateful for what the club and everybody affiliated with it has given me.”

Unsworth and Royle, who were player and manager when Everton won the FA Cup in 1995, coach the under-21s so it was no surprise that the Everton team had a youthful look about it.

Midfielders Tom Davies, 17, and Kieran Dowell, 18, both made their first starts while Jonjoe Kenny, 19, was given his debut off the bench.

It has been a bad run for both Everton, with one win in their previous 10 games, and leading scorer Romelu Lukaku, who was without a goal in nine.

His lack of confidence was clear as he was played in by Gareth Barry in the 12th minute but shot weakly at John Ruddy, who then pulled off another save to keep out a better effort by the Belgian.